Brush dispenser



Sept 17, 1957 J. a. BAUMQEARTNER BRUSH DISPENSER 2 Sheets-Sheath Filed April 5, 1954 :INVENTOR.

. P 17, 1957 J. a. B AUMGARTNER 2,806,634

BRUSH DISPENSER Filed April 5, 1954 I 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 WW A n W I 5 7/////////////////// m:

WW AM I IIIIIIIIIIIII/ I- F. INVENTOR. 41572 n afiauwgriizez BRUSH DISPENSER John G. Baumgartner, Aurora, lll.

Application April 5, 1954, Serial No. 421,029

3 Claims. (Cl. 2213tl1) This invention relates generally to dispensing apparatus and more particularly to an improved device adapted to dispense surgical brushes. I

It is customary in medical and dental oifices to provide a supply of brushes for surgeons, dentists and the like to use in scrubbing and sterilizing their hands preparatory to their various activities. These brushes must, of course, be sterilized before use and be stored in such a way that they remain in this sterilized condition. It has been found convenient to insert the surgical brushes in a container which may be placed as a unit in a sterilizer to sterilize the brushes, and then supported at a position for use as a dispenser so that no handling of the brushes is necessary after sterilization. Furthermore, it is desirable that a dispenser function in such a way that a brush may be rapidly removed therefrom but with minimum possibility of affecting the remaining brushes by touching them or allowing them to fall out of the dispensing apparatus.

Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved container for housing brushes and the like, and which is constructed so that such brushes may be easily withdrawn therefrom one at a time, and wherein only after the complete removal of one brush does another move into position for removal.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved device for housing articles to be dispensed singly, which device may be removably mounted on a support and which may be simply and quickly refilled when necessary.

A further object of the invention is to provide an improved device for dispensing articles singly in which the likelihood of inadvertent removal of the articles is reduced to a minimum.

Still another object is to provide an improved dispensing apparatus which is of sturdy construction and which utillizes rugged moving parts so that it may withstand repeated sterilizing processes.

Still another object of the invention'is to provide an improved and simplified brush dispensing mechanism wherein only the handle of a brush being removed therefrom need be touched in the removal operation.

A feature of the invention is the provision of a brush dispenser including a casing for housing a stacked plurality of brushes and having a sliding cover to facilitate insertion of them and a'removal opening with pivoted gate flaps extending thereacross to prevent accidental removal of the brushes.

Another feature is the provision of a brush dispenser adapted for manual removal of brushes one at a time and having" pivoted arm means for supporting the brushes remainingin the dispenser as one is removed so as to prevent touching of the others or the removal of more than one at a time.

A further feature of the invention is the provision of a dispensing apparatus with closable apertures in the top thereof and an opening at the bottom thereof to allow atent circulation .of sterilizing. fluids therethrough, and with r 2 the bottom opening also permitting one to grasp a single brush for removal thereof.

Still another feature of the invention is the provision of a dispenser for dispensing sterilized brushes which has a dispensing opening therein to allow removal of one brush without touching other than the handle thereof and which has a guarding structure surrounding the opening to prevent any touching of other than the sterilized dispenser during the removal operation. I

Further objects,features' and the attending advantages thereof will be apparent upon consideration of the following description when taken in conjunction with the drawings'in which:

Fig. 1 is a view of the dispenser with a brush being removed therefrom;

' Fig. 2 is a sectional view along the line 22 in Fig. 1.;

Fig. 3 is a front view of the device; 'Fig. 4 isa bottom view of the device; '-Fig. 5 is a cut-away drawing showing the brushes stacked'in the dispenser;

Fig. 6 is a cut-away view showing the support of the remaining brushes during removal of one of them; Fig. 7 is a sectional view along line 7-7 in Fig. 5; vFig. 8 is a sectional view along line 8-8 in Fig. 6; and

Fig. 9 is a sectional view along the line 99 in Fig. 3. In accordance with the invention, there is provided dis pensing apparatus for surgical brushes which includes a housing or container adapted to contain a stacked plurality of brushes; the housing having a removable sliding cover, brackets for detachably supporting the housing on a wall or the like, and upper and lower openings at the ends thereof to allow circulation through the unit during sterilization of the device and its contents. A pair of gate flaps partially enclose the lower opening, and these flaps prevent inadvertent removal of the contents but pivot to clear this opening when the lowermost brush is grasped and manually removed from the unit. When the gate flaps are pivoted open by engagement with the brush being removed, a pair of support arms mechanically coupled to the flaps pivot to a position within the housing to support the remainder of the stack of brushes, thus preventing touching or accidental removal of the brushes so as to maintain them in their sterile condition within the housing. A further housing, which contains spring means for returning the gate flaps to their original position in which they partially enclose the removal opening, forms an enclosure around the opening through which the bottom brush is grasped to insure-that a persons hand will not contact the wall or other surface that supports the dispenser and which might not be sterile.

Referring now to Fig. 1, a dispenser it), which maybe formed of some durable material such as stainless steel, is shown supported on a wall 12, and the dispenser includes a housing or container 18 of rectangular crosssection. A plurality of brushes (such as brush 13) may bestacked in the housing with their backs downward. The container includes a sliding cover 14 having bentover edges which engage flanges along the sides of the container so that by sliding the cover upward it may be removed entirely thus allowing complete access to the interior of the container. Rapid arrangement or inspection of the brushes is therefore possible. The bottom view of the dispenser shown in Fig. 4 also illustrates the cover and housing structure. 7 The top plate 21 of the housing has a pair of apertures 23 and 24 which permit circulation of sterilizing fluid through the unit when it is detached from its support and placedin a sterilizer. Fig. 2 shows the details of the top plate 21 more clearly, and it may be seen that la sliding plate 30-is supported on brackets 32 and 34" under the top plate, and plate 30 also has a pair of aper- 'tures therein. A control knob 27 projects from sliding member 30 through a slot in top plate 21. As this knob is moved to the dotted position, the apertures in the sliding plate move from an aligned to a misaligned position with respect to those in the top plate and the housing is closed :to prevent entry of foreign matter. 7

Upper and lower mounting brackets 42 and 49 for supporting the dispenser are shown in Figs. 3 and 9. The upper -bracket 42 is a 'U-shaped member having a flat portion spaced and parallel to the back of housing 18 and with two flange portions 43 and 44 securing it to the housing. A slot 46 is formed in the flat portion of bracket 42 and is adapted to engage a wall stud to support the unit. The lower bracket 49 is in the form of a flat blade spaced and parallel to the back of housing 18 and which is adapted to be inserted behind a suitable wall plate to provide further support.

Fig. 3 also illustrates a lower brush '55 held in an inverted position on a pair of ledge supports 57 and 59 extending partially across the open bottom of housing 18; and other brushes contained in the unit, also in an inverted position, are stacked over the lower brush as shown in Fig. 5. Cover 14 has a dispensing opening 62 formed therein, and this opening is of a size such that the lowermost brush may pass therethrough. A pair of pivoted gate flaps 65 and 66 partially close this opening to prevent accidental removal of this lower brush.

Surrounding the back and two sides of the lower portion of container 18 is an enclosure 70 (Figs 1 and 4). This enclosure contains a pair of rotatable pivot posts 91 and 93 which form the pivot means for the gate flaps 65, 66 and to which the gate flaps are respectively affixed; and a pair of support arms 74 and 75, shown in Figs. 6 and 8, are also respectively aflixed to the pivot posts. A pair of coil springs 95 and 97 are respectively mounted on the pivot posts and anchored to the housing 18 to spring bias flaps 65, 66 to a closed position across opening 62 and to hold arms 74, 75 out of housing 18 and within the enclosure 70. Housing 18 has a rear opening 77 therein (Figs. 5, 6) communicating with enclosure 70, and this opening permits access to the back side of the lowermost brush handle. The opening 77, it may be noted, is approximately the height of the thickness of a brush handle so that in reaching to grasp the brush only the handle will be touched; also the back wall 78 of enclosure 70 (Figs. 1 and 9) provides a guard so that the hand will not contact the supporting wall 12 which may not be sterile. It may be seen that the lower support bracket 49 is secured to the back wall 78 of enclosure 70 and that the ledge supports 57 and 59 are secured to the back of housing 18 by a pair of brackets 80, 81 (Figs. 7, 8 and 9).

When it is desired to remove a brush, the convenient procedure is to place the fingers under the lowermost brush between ledges 57, 59, grasp the back side of the handle through opening 77 and pull it outwardly against gate flaps 65, 66 with the thumb engaging the front side of the handle through the spacing between the gate flaps. Fig. 1 illustrates this operation, and it may be seen that the ends of the brush handle engage flaps 65 and 66 and pivot them to an open position. It is noteworthy that only the brush handle need be touched during the entire operation.

As seen in Figs. 6 and 9, the operation described above causes support arms 74 and 75 to pivot around the pivot shafts through apertures 100 and 101 in the sides of housing 18 (see Figs. 6 and 8) to a position within the housing. As can be seen from Figs. 1, and 9, each brush 13 shown in the dispenser has a hollow back rectangular in cross-section, and which is preferably molded and capable of withstanding sterilizing processes while stacked ina dispenser, and with the entire unit being sterilized. In the position of Fig. 6 the arms 74 and 75 extend into the hollow portion 105 in the second lowermost brush 13 to support the same after the lower one has been drawn from beneath it. Fig. 8 illustrates a sectional view through the dispenser when a brush being removed is still engaging the gate flaps 65 and 66 as in Fig. 1. It may be clearly seen here and in Fig. 6 that the remainder of the stack of brushes is supported by the arms 74 and 75 so that they are not in a position to fall out or be touched by the hand.

When the removal of a brush is complete, the springs return the gate flaps 65 and 66 across the opening 62 and the support arms are returned to their position in enclosure 70 (Fig. 5). This enables the remaining brushes to drop down with the lower one resting on support ledges 57 and 59 ready for another cycle of operation.

Thus the dispenser provides an enclosed container for surgical brushes which may be conveniently loaded and thereafter placed in a sterlizer to sterilize both the unit and its contents. Then by mounting it at a suitable location, a person may quickly and simply remove them one at a time. During removal the hand need touch only the handle of the brush being removed or at the most a portion of the sterilized dispenser. Furthermore, the brushes remaining in the unit are prevented from interfering or falling out as dispensing takes place.

While a particular embodiment of the invention has been shown and described, changes may be made and it is intended in the appended claims to cover' all such changes and modifications as fall within the scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. A dispensing device for permitting a series of stacked articles to be individually removed therefrom and including in combination, an elongated container for housing such articles in a stacked condition; means for supporting said container in spaced relation from a surface, said container having an open bottom, having a dispensing opening adjacent said bottom in one wall thereof, and having a further opening adjacent said bottom in a second wall opposite to said dispensing opening; a pair of ledge supports extending partially across said open bottom from opposite sides thereof; a pair of closure mem bers pivotally mounted on opposite sides of said dispensing opening and extending partially across said dispensing opening; said dispensing opening, said open bottom, and said further opening being in alignment to permit one of said articles to be manually grasped and pulled through said dispensing'opening with such article engaging and pivoting said closure members, a pair of support arms respectively coupled to said closure members and adapted to move from a disengaging position to a position within said container engaging a second lowermost article within said container upon the pivotal opening of said closure members; and spring biasing means for normally maintaining said closure members across said dispensing opening and said support arms in said disengaging position.

2. A dispensing device for permitting a series of rectangular brushes to be individually removed therefrom and including in combination, an elongated rectangular shaped container having a front wall, a back wall and a pair of said walls, for housing brushes in a stacked condition; said container having an open bottom, having a dispensing opening extending upwardly from said bottom in said front wall thereof, and having a further opening extending upwardly from said bottom in said back wall thereof; an enclosure structure surrounding the lower portion of said container and extending around the back wall and sides thereof; a pair of ledge supports extending partially across said open bottom from opposite sides thereof so that a brush resting on said ledge supports may be grasped through said further openings and said dispensing opening and pulled through said dispensing opening with said enclosure structure providing a guard to prevent touching of surroundings; a pair of pivot posts supported in said enclosure structure on opposite sides of said dispensing opening; a pair of closure members respectively mounted on said pivot posts and extending partially across said dispensing opening; a pair of support arms respectively affired to said pivot posts and adapted to move from a disengaging position within said enclosure structure to a position extending into said container so as to engage a second lowermost brush within said container upon the pivotal opening of said closure members; and a pair of resilient springs for respectively maintaining said closure members across said dispensing opening and said support arms in said disengaging position Within said enclosure structure.

3. A dispenser apparatus including in combination an elongated housing adapted to be vertically supported and having a rectangular cross-section, a pair of spaced ledge supports at one end and an aperture in said housing adjacent said ledge supports, a removable cover comprising the front of said housing and having a dispenser aperture also adjacent said ledge supports, a pair of pivoted means disposed on opposite sides of said dispenser aperture, spring means for retaining said pivoted means in a first position but permitting pivotal movement thereof to a second position each of said pivoted means including a gate flap extending across said dispensing aperture in said first position and pivotable to provide clearance through said aperture in said second position, said pivoted means further including portions extending in close parallel relation to, and outside of, said ledge support, said portions providing substantial extensions of said ledge support upon pivotal movement of said pivoted means, and each of said pivoted means including an arm portion pivotal to a position to limit the cross-section of said housing in said second position of said pivoted means by the pivotal movement of said gate flaps to said second position.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,728,454 Sterling Sept. 17, 1929 1,950,382 Benson Mar. 13, 1934 2,546,291 Baumgartner Mar. 27, 1951 2,661,991 Petrecca Dec. 8, 1953 

